The video above records the scene of hundreds of eels “rooting” off the coast of Oahu Island, where there are strong ocean currents, waiting for the water to bring food to their mouths. Each individual will be “stuck firmly” under the sand for its entire life, never moving anywhere else.

Hawaiian garden eels are shy creatures that only appear in Hawaiian waters. Males can reach a maximum length of nearly 60cm.

Hawaiian garden eels live at depths from 11 to 53 meters and make burrows in the sand. They are diurnal creatures, only appearing when the sun rises. As soon as dusk falls, they immediately huddle in their burrows.

This eel spends its entire life staying still in one place to avoid the eyes of predatory sharks that can appear at any time. They only stretch part of their body out of the cave and wait for the strong ocean current to carry zooplankton straight into their mouths.

Hawaiian garden eels have large eyes, allowing them to quickly detect tiger sharks circling and hunting. When in danger, they immediately retreat into the cave. When the danger passes, the herd continues to rise and wait for food to enter its mouth.

However, tiger sharks just circle around and don’t care about the “cluster” of garden eels below. What they are interested in is food that is more suitable at a location about 800 km to the northwest. In fact, the creatures they fear are their own kind because the battle for territory between male eels is very fierce.